


First Meetings

by OliveYou



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Red String of Fate, basically every soulmates au ever, mostly leo/sakura but maybe others, soulmates - clock counting down to when you first meet, soulmates - color comes from touching your soulmate, soulmates - drawing on your skin draws on your soulmate's skin, soulmates - first/last words your soulmate says to you written on your body, soulmates - reading each other's thoughts, soulmates - stop aging at 18 until you find your soulmate, soulmates - your soulmate has the same tattoo/birthmark as you somewhere
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-23
Updated: 2016-10-26
Packaged: 2018-08-16 22:01:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8119063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OliveYou/pseuds/OliveYou
Summary: A bunch of soulmate prompts, mostly Leo/Sakura centered.





	1. Color

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes, color can be found in tragedy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Color comes when you touch your soulmate's skin for the first time.  
> courtesy of Anarchyinplasma.

Black and white, shades of grey.

That’s all there was to the world, and though his family and friends might tell stories of a thing called _color_ , he really wasn’t counting on it. It was a faraway concept; one he’d never really thought about.

Instead, he distracted himself with books, because they never had ‘color’-just black ink and white pages.

(Elise once told him that the pages were yellow, and the ink blue-but he didn’t believe her)

And so he grew up, surrounded by gray, and he thought nothing of red and blue and yellow, because he didn’t _care_ about finding a soulmate-not really, he told himself, though in the late hours of the night he would allow himself to dream about fate and destiny and _color_.

(He hoped that they liked books-it would be sad if they didn’t care for reading; he loved discussing and analyzing the meanings, give him a book over a soulmate any day)

Marx found _his_ soulmate at the age of fifteen, lucky him-he hired her on the spot, and Leo was left with an all-too-enthusiastic sorcerer and a twisted former outlaw.

_Fantastic_.

He had some comfort, though-Camilla hadn’t found _hers_ yet, and she had been presented with _thousands_ of suitors in her lifetime.

(He didn’t really look for his; she did. She was always _searching_ , searching for that one person who could show her color and turn her world upside down)

Bits of stories floated around their castle-one of the maids seeing color for the first time, an old soldier’s sight turning black and white, names of colors taught only to the ones who could _see_ -

He envied Marx more than ever, then, because it all sounds so _interesting_ ; he craved knowledge, and that piece was _always_ out of reach. It’s so _pathetic_ ; he can wield Brynhildr, but he can’t see the color blue? No wonder Father was always disappointed in him.

(Kamui had always seen color. She wasn’t sure when it happened, but now her soulmate was _gone_ , and her sadness was dampened by the fact that she had no memories to cry about)

 

It’s only when his family is smashed to pieces that something comes into view.

 

He hates the world, now, because he’s been a brother to Corrin and Kamui for so _long_ and they’ve thrown _everything_ away, just like that-they could die in a hole for all he _cares_ , this is _madness_ -

(Father is _fine_ , he tells himself, but his mind doesn’t really buy it, and _something_ is very, very wrong)

Zola is a _rat_ , and he feels nothing as he executes the worthless mage, he couldn’t care less about the Hoshidian princess, and he can hardly _look_ at Kamui-

The princess stumbles and grabs his arm to steady herself; he moves to shake her off and she tries to get up but her fingers brush against his face and his world is _shatters_ and _everything_ _explodes_ -

His world is no longer painted in black and white, for now there is _color_.

It’s beautiful and wonderful and incredible and _indescribable_ , but all he can feel is _dread_ because _this isn’t how it’s supposed to be-_

(He thought it would be happy, meeting his soulmate, but it’s _not_ -she’s frozen in place and his blood has turned to ice)

It’s ripping his heart in two but he pushes her away, roughly, gives his farewells to Kamui and walks _far_ , _far_ _away_ , with no looking back-because if he did, he knows he wouldn’t be able to leave her-

_This is color, then. How terribly ironic._

(Later, in his room, he marvels at how Elise was _right_ , the pages of Brynhildr are more than just _white_ , and it’s not black magic that he summons, it’s something much brighter and brilliant)

It’s a small comfort, though, that he’s found both his color and soulmate and only lost _half_ -but he wants to know this girl so _desperately_ now, he’s never really believed in fate but this must be it, he _has_ to find her again, _somehow_ -

(They’ll probably cross paths in the future, he knows, but it won’t be a happy reunion, and he doesn’t want to kill his _soulmate_ , he doesn’t want to live with that, he doesn’t want his color to disappear)

So he resolves to make the most of the time he has, and hopes she appreciates this gift as much as he does-

Even though they might never meet again, he still has something to remember her by.

(Meanwhile, she is standing frozen, _terrified_ , and Kamui asks her if she’s alright. The words that come out are scarcely more than a whisper)

_“I think I just met my soulmate.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so this one is a little more serious than what I have planned for the others but it's happy if you know how the Revelations path goes  
> yay  
> it'salsolongersoyeah  
> the concept of having a soulmate is a wonderful idea to explore and I think I'm going to have a lot of fun with these.


	2. Inked

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It just so turns out that his soulmate is an artist. Leo doesn't mind at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so this was REALLY fun to write and I'm thinking of doing Sakura's part of things because it's so fun  
> I also relate to this because I love to draw on myself

Leo gets his first mark at the age of eleven, and it freaks him out.

He’s sitting at the dinner table, reading and eating at the same time, when he feels something on his wrist and there’s a _heart_ , and a half-finished flower appearing on his skin.

Needless to say, he flips out, effectively ruining their dinner.

Elise squeals in delight when she sees it, because oh, he’s so _lucky_ -and Camilla smiles knowingly, and explains everything to him while Marx laughs into his coleslaw.

_“It’s from your soulmate.” She says, while he watches the flower grow into five flowers and the hearts swirl around his arm. “Whatever they draw on themselves, appears on you.”_

In time, he learns to love it, those tiny scribbles and bits of words. She-he assumes it’s a her because _really_ , who else would draw hearts on their _arm_ -has the cutest handwriting he’s ever seen, and he likes to read her notes when he’s bored.

She has a wonderful sense of humor.

Even so, he starts to wear long sleeves and turtlenecks, because the teasing comes quickly and he’s not partial to unwanted attention. He hates the way they poke fun at her designs, because he thinks they’re _wonderful_. They don’t get it.

Still, he watches her drawing in the middle of class, when the teacher’s not looking, and traces her g’s and q’s with his finger.

Sometimes she uses markers. All colors.

He doesn’t really write on himself, he’d much rather use sticky notes or voice memos; but one day he forgets his phone, grabs his pen and jots down whatever piece of information he needs to remember.

It’s only after, when he’s washing his hands and watches the water turn gray, does he remember.

He hopes she’s alright with it. He hopes she didn’t freak out like he did. He hopes she _likes_ it.

She must be shy, because he never gets any advances; no “hello?” or “what’s your name?”, just the usual doodles and notes.

He wonders if she thinks of him like he thinks of her: curiously and affectionately.

There have been times when he’s been worried, worried because it’s been a _week_ and his arms are completely _bare_ , what’s happened to her?

Later, the ink soaks into his skin and it’s _signatures_ , names and hearts and get-well-soon’s from people he’s never heard of.

He breathes a sigh of relief and rubs his arm, thinking of how she might’ve broken it.

One Friday, he almost screams in the middle of class because she’s pressing _hard,_ and the writing is all but illegible. The letters are sharp and shaky, written in black ink.

She must be mad.

It hurts, and leaves long, red marks on his arms afterwards, but he just hopes she’s alright now.

_The day after he sees a small, light red “sorry” on his palm. He smiles._

_She’s never talked to him before._

He realizes he’s fallen in love with her without ever meeting her.

Surprisingly, he doesn’t care like he thought he would. She’s a part of his life now, a tiny bit of him that he wouldn’t trade for anything. He feels quite attached to her, and he doesn’t even know what she _sounds_ like. Funny how much a few words on your skin can tell you.

He wants to tell her.

He starts; stops again. Grabs a pen. It’s green. Purple is better, but he doesn’t have time to search for one now. It’s late and he knows it; she probably went to sleep an _hour_ ago, but he needs to do _something_.

His hand hovers over his arm for a moment.

_Start small_ , he reminds himself. _Just say “hi.”_

_Hello. My name is Leo. I’m not exactly sure how to say this, but…_

_You’re sort of my soulmate._

_I’d like to talk sometime, if that’s okay with you._

The next morning, he rushes to the mirror and checks himself. There, on the back of his hand.

_I’d like that._

It looks rushed, maybe, done with a marker-pink-early in the morning. He doesn’t care.

And there, in the middle of the bathroom at 6:30 in the morning, he starts to grin.

This time, he doesn’t even bother to hide the ink.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aaaaaaaa I just really enjoyed this and I hope you did too, haha.  
> Thanks for all of your support! <3


	3. Markers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura is a natural artist, and she hopes her soulmate is too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> y'know I have a pack of markers  
> and when I wash them off my skin everything fades  
> except for the purple  
> WHY PURPLE WHY, I DON'T EVEN LIKE PURPLE THAT MUCH, WHY

For as long as she can remember, Sakura has been an artist.

She doesn’t consider herself particularly _talented_ , of course-it’s more of a hobby, something to waste her time with. When she was younger, she scribbled over paper with big, fat markers in bright, bold colors, and as she got older, it was pencils, and then pens.

Ink shows up wonderfully well on skin, and she soon takes to drawing on herself when she feels bored, because her classes are terribly dull and her hands like to be occupied.

And so her body becomes her canvas.

Her friends tease her about her “tattoos”, her teachers ask her if she takes notes-she does, it’s more than just _flowers_ on her skin-and Takumi complains-he’s got marks too, but he would _never_ admit it-but she ignores them all and draws, draws, draws swirls and hearts and vines and fireworks.

On her twelfth birthday, she gets an art kit with fancy colored pencils, vibrant watercolors, and most of all _markers,_ in pink and purple and green.

She loves them, and draws rainbows on her wrists at night.

One day, her arm is scribbled on with black ink and handwriting that is definitely _not_ hers, and she regards it curiously. Did someone write on her as she slept?

_“Odin was the father of, among others, Thor (the famous god of thunder) and Baldr, who is seen as the god of peace and purity.”_

How strange… She doesn’t know much about gods, but she does know that these are Norse names, and she’s never studied them.

Then, quite suddenly, the words smear.

She gasps, and Takumi looks up from his math homework.

The words disappear, as if some unknown force just wiped it off.

_She tells her mother, later, when she’s in bed and too sleepy to open her eyes, and her mother tells her all about soulmates, and writing, and then she’s asleep._

Why has she never heard about this? Does that mean Takumi’s marks aren’t _his_?

Her head spins and wonders if she should try and _talk_ to this person, but those thoughts are pushed away by her shyness, and she does nothing.

A few weeks later, she trips and falls down the library stairs, breaking her arm-her _writing_ arm.

Her friends take notes for her.

Subaki is certainly thorough, and she makes sure to read his extensive notes before bedtime so she doesn’t hurt his feelings. Hana draws on her cast, and Sakura tells her not to use the sharpie, but she does anyway. Soon there are millions of hearts and names from schoolmates.

Sharpie stains badly.

She knows this because she drew a smiley face once and it didn’t rub off for _days_.

At night, she takes off the cast-just for a bit-and the names are all soaked into her skin. She thinks about soulmates and words, ink and colors, and falls asleep with a smile on her face.

_She never notices the new name among the others, because he uses soft ink and she washes her arm in the mornings._

_This time, he writes in cursive._

On Friday, her mother tells her she’s too _young_ to sleep over at Hana’s house, Takumi _laughs_ at her when she pours her orange juice into her cereal, and Ryoma tells her she’s got Subaki’s notes imprinted on her _forehead_.

She feels like crying. She feels like screaming.

She takes it all out on her arm, using the darkest pen she can find. It feels satisfying, for the first two minutes, but then it’s just _ugly_ , and it _hurts,_ and there’s no room left to doodle.

As she watches the dark water swirl down the drain, she remembers her soulmate, and starts to cry.

_The next day, she nervously writes “sorry” on her palm with a red pen, and hopes for the best._

_She swears she saw a “that’s okay” for a moment, but who really knows?_

His notes appear infrequently, but they’re witty and interesting to read, and she likes to think she knows something about him.

She wakes up early one day and there’s _green_ all up and down her arm.

_Hello. My name is Leo. I’m not exactly sure how to say this, but…_

_You’re sort of my soulmate._

_I’d like to talk sometime, if that’s okay with you._

Her heart races and she grabs a pink marker from her desk, way too excited to think about her shyness _now_ -her hands are shaking badly, but she scribbles something down and races off to school.

She hopes he can read it.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't know how to end this one  
> rip  
> note that I ship Elise/Takumi


	4. Countdown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leo takes a trip to the library.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> in which everyone has a clock counting down to when they first meet their soulmate.

(6 days, 14 hours, 7 minutes and 9 seconds)

He taps on the clock nervously. It’s getting closer now.

He’s never really realized how _real_ this was, how he was actually going to find his _soulmate_. It was just something in the far off future, one of those things that would eventually come, but not for a while. Or ever.

He’d only remembered it because of Niles, who burst into their dorm one night and announced that he found his soulmate at the takeout place and therefore he shouldn’t be punished for bringing the food back _three_ _hours_ _late_.

Leo threw him into the dumpster.

Odin had been so curious, though, and he demanded to see the clock. Niles proudly flashed his clock and wow, it actually _was_ at 00:00:00-and Odin was yelling and Leo was threatening to throw _him_ out the window as well, and the neighbors were threatening to call the _police_ if they didn’t _shut_ _up_ -

When everything was all said and done, they sat at the table eating cold chow mein and dumplings, interrogating Niles for more information-was she _nice_ , Leo asked-was she a _babe_ , Odin wanted to know-

And Leo checked his clock under the table and almost had a heart attack.

He confides in Odin, later, when Niles had gone to his room and the lights are out. Odin is equal parts impressed and envious, and tells him how _lucky_ he is.

He doesn’t feel all that lucky. Just terrified.

It’s been almost a week, and his clock has only _hours_ to go. He tries not to let it control his life, but it’s only _ten_ _hours_ and he’s freaking out.

He’s frozen all during breakfast and Niles asks him what’s up. He doesn’t answer.

_Fifty minutes. This is real._

Odin knows it and gives him the _good luck_ thumbs up as he heads out the door.

He walks to the library, half-automatically because exam season just ended and he just _feels_ like he should go there; besides, he usually goes to the library on Saturdays and there’s no reason to stop _now_.

He doesn’t have any expectations, really; he leaves that to the definition of _soulmate_ , hopefully it’s all right and they _click_ , hopefully he doesn’t give a horrible first impression-

The doors open and he steps inside.

History is a personal favorite of his and he might as well take out a few books while he’s here. The bookcases are distracting, but he can’t completely rid himself of the nagging feeling in the back of his head- _fifteen minutes, it says_ -and he can’t focus on the books. He can’t even read them.

He picks one out at random and starts towards the front desk.

_Two minutes. One minute. Is this really happening? It must be, I’m going crazy, oh no no no no-_

_Deep breaths, Leo. In and out._

_Five seconds. Somebody pinch me, I must be dreaming._

_Four-_

_Three-_

They both place their books down on the counter.

_Two-_

She looks up. He looks down.

_One-_

Peach eyes catch his brown ones and they stare.

_Zero._

_Click._

Silence.

He exhales, slowly, and takes it all in.

Pink hair. Okay. Petite, thin, delicate.

She stares at him. It’s not a good kind of stare. It’s a frozen, horrified stare.

She’s scared, he realizes. She’s _terrified._ She’s probably been dreading this, meeting her soulmate.

Her hands are shaking.

He takes them.

He should say something, but instead he just waits. The silence would be peaceful, but she’s _shaking_ so badly, and he wants to tell it’s _all right_ , everything’s _okay_ -

There’s a sudden rush of protectiveness and it occurs to him that this is his _soulmate_ and he’s going to spend his _whole_ _life with her and he’d better make her happy, or else, and divine dragons above this is not a dream, this is the real thing, do something-_

So he takes her into his arms and hugs her, _tightly_ , and whispers _everything is going to be alright_ in her ear, and rubs her hair between his fingers and marvels how _soft_ it is and how he really _did_ hit the jackpot, she’s beautiful and tiny and warm and _perfect_ , she smells like spring flowers and sunshine, and soon enough she calms down and he lets her go.

They stare at each other for a bit before they realize that they’re in the middle of a library.

She smiles, nervously, and Leo does the only thing he can think of.

He asks her out to dinner.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I imagine it's a very stressful thing, meeting your partner-for-life and all.  
> I'd be really scared


	5. Headache

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Takumi gets a headache, and thinks about clouds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eyyyyy guess who's back? :D  
> I had a bit of a writer's block, I think, but here's a thing.  
> There's going to be a second chapter to this so look out for that  
> anyways, the au is you can *sometimes* hear the other's thoughts, BUT you cannot communicate until you meet each other in real life.

_“I think that fuchsijenta is a great name. like, magenta and fuchsia mixed together… or something.”_

Wait. _What?_

Takumi looked up from his desk and glanced around. Nope. Nobody heard that, then.

_“ooh! what if you could ride those really giant turtles that are only in the islands of whatever?”_

He almost groaned, pushing his face into his hands and rubbing his eyes. It’s happening again, isn’t it?

_Great_.

Like he really needed a headache in the middle of his math test.

It’s only been a month since he first started having these… _things_ , and he’s already starting to hate them, and whoever is _dumb_ enough to think about _giant turtles_ in the _middle_ of _school_.

Plus, the voice is high and childish and he can’t for the life of him place where he’s heard it before. It’s going to drive him _crazy_.

_Shut up shut up shut up. Please. For the sake of my sanity._

_“and what if you could like stand on clouds and they were kinda like snow so you could make cloud cities and live there and that would be so cool!!”_

_Nope._

Takumi gritted his teeth, squeezed his pencil, and looked back down at his test.

He is going to _kill_ her.

Why oh why didn’t he get someone like _Sakura_? _She_ got someone _smart_ (which is a plus when working on math tests) _and_ he’s nice and funny and _caring_ -

He’d even go for someone like Hinata’s-sassy, smart, hard-working… It’s like _everyone_ got someone perfect but _him_.

_It’s not fair._

…but there are times, late at night, when she worries him. She doesn’t have a mother. She’s the youngest in a family of geniuses (boy, can he relate-well, he’s not the _youngest_ , but close enough) and it’s just her luck that she looks five years younger that she actually _is_.

In a way, he admires her spirit. He just feels worthless. She _does_ something about it.

…he still hates her though. Most of the time.

_Yeah._

“Alright, class dismissed! Put your tests up front, thank you!”

Takumi hauls his backpack up and files out the door, trying to force his headache out of his mind. He’s pretty sure he got _most_ of the problems right, but who knows when there’s the equivalent of a ten-year-old whispering in your ear-

“Hey! Watch where you’re going! Geez!” Oops. _Short people are so hard to see._

“Right, right. So-rry.” He replies, monotone, and keeps walking.

…Waitaminute.

He freezes, spins around, and scans the hallway. Nope. _No_ _way_.

…and she’s gone. _Typical_. Meeting her in the _hallway_ (really, what could be less romantic?) and then _losing_ her because she’s too _short_.

_I hate my life._

“What happened? You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.”

Takumi sighs and turns around again. She’s gone, and he doesn’t even know what she _looks_ like.

“Something like that.”

Leo rolls his eyes. No reason to tell him. Good thing it isn’t Hinata- _he_ would pester until he got an answer.

“How was the math test?” He asks, and Takumi shrugs. He doesn’t remember. Just something about giant cloud turtles.

“...I dunno. I think I did alright though.”

Leo _hmphs_. _He_ probably got everything right, being the _genius_ that he is. He’ll probably rub it in once the scores come out.

Takumi clears his throat.

“Hey, Leo… do you know any, uh, short-ish girls with high, annoying voices?”

Leo stares.

“I didn’t know you liked short ones.”

“That’s _not_ it!!” Takumi tries to explain but Leo’s already laughing too hard to listen. He should’ve seen that coming, really, but his head is hurting and all he can think of is magenta cloud cities.

“I can introduce you to my sister,” Leo says, grinning. “She’s _tiny_. And pretty annoying.”

“ _Leo_.”

“Sorry. But seriously, where did that _come_ from?” Takumi shrugs.

“Just someone I bumped into on the way here. Wondering if you had any ideas.” Leo shakes his head. Well, it was worth a try, anyway.

_Oh well._

_Guess I’m just going crazy then._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whew, I like this one actually!  
> note that Oboro and Hinata are besties and soulmates  
> also that Leo is Takmui's friend but Takumi doesn't know that Leo is his sister's soulmate


	6. Realization

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leo reaches a conclusion. Takumi is less than pleased.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Or alternatively, Heachache Part 2! Because Takulise is best.  
> There's gonna be about 3 chapters for this I think? Don't know yet.

“Hey, Leo…”

“Yeah?”

“What’s your soulmate like?”

Leo drops his fork and hums. He’s not sure.

“She’s quiet,” he says slowly, “And thoughtful. Very smart. Shy. Younger sounding, but not by much.”

Takumi sighs. He doesn’t seem happy to hear it.

“Sounds nice.” He mumbles. Leo nods.

“She’s really nice… I feel like I’ve heard her voice before, but maybe that’s just me.”

Another sigh. “Yeah. It’s like I _know_ her... Like maybe she’s right in this building and I’m just walking past her _every_ _day_.” Takumi faceplants into the table while Leo plays with his food.

He’s thought of that before. What if he spent his whole life with her just around the corner? It’s certainly a possibility.

_Besides_ , there have been times where he’s almost 100% sure that it was _her_ voice down the hall, that _she_ was the one reading in the library, but…

Honestly, he’s a little scared. Meeting your soulmate is nothing to laugh about. It’s dead serious.

“You’re so lucky.” Takumi’s voice is muffled. His food is untouched and Leo takes the opportunity to steal his potato chips.

“You get someone all cute and perfect and I get a stupid little child.” Well, that’s a little bit of an exaggeration, isn’t it? She’s not _that_ perfect… She’s quite smart, but she’s way too shy to make any friends. He’d probably scare her with one of his “death glares” by accident.

“How old is she?”

“I dunno. Her voice is super squeaky and she’s always talking about the _stupidest_ things, like _giant_ _turtles_ , and her family is like a bunch of _geniuses_ so she always feels left out and she likes to read late at night and her giggles are super cute and I’m pretty sure I ran into her after math but she got away and it’s driving me _crazy_ -”

“Wait, _what?_ ” Leo yanks Takumi up by his hair and glares at him. “You never told me this! We should go find her!”

“I don’t even know what she looks like!” Takumi cries, “Let go of my hair, that _hurts_!”

“She’s short, right?” Leo says, ignoring him.

“...Yeah? I guess?” 

Leo drops the ponytail and Takumi sighs, pulling out the hairband.  For a teenager, he’s surprisingly anxious about his looks. That hair of his takes at _least_ 30 minutes in the mornings. _Honestly_.

Takumi glares at him, muttering and redoing his ponytail. Leo ignores him (again) and instead puts his attention towards the matter of soulmates.

Giant turtles… Short… Family of geniuses…

Oh _._

_Oh._

“The bell’s going to ring soon.” He says, standing up and grabbing his backpack.

Takumi looks at him, thoroughly confused by this sudden change in tone. He opens his mouth to say something but Leo cuts him off.

“Maybe we can meet up tomorrow. You can come over to my house, it was Camilla’s birthday a little while ago so we still have some cake in the fridge.”

“O...kay?”

“Okay great see you later-” Takumi stands up to stop him but Leo’s already out the door and into the hall, glancing over his shoulder. Takumi’s standing there with his mouth open and Leo can’t help but smile. He looks quite ridiculous, all things considered.

Not exactly the soulmate _he_ what he would’ve picked for Elise, but it works.

_Now it’s just a matter of setting it all up…_

_This is going to be very, very interesting._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leo is secret matchmaker confirmed


	7. Communication

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takumi's life takes a turn for the unexpected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, there's going to be four chapters. sorry.  
> but hey, thanks for 1000 hits and 60 kudos! that's crazy! thank you all so much!  
> this chapter was fun to write X3

“…Can someone solve this problem? Come up to the board, don’t be shy…”

Takumi looks down at his book and pretends to be taking notes. He doesn’t need to be noticed _now_ , after everything that’s happened today…

He shoots a glare over at Leo, who doesn’t show any signs of noticing. That insufferable (so what if he stole that word from him? It’s a good one) _jerk_ stopped talking to him altogether after lunchtime, what’s his _problem_? Takumi’s sure he didn’t do anything wrong… Did he? He frowns down at his notebook and tries to think.

_I didn’t steal his calculator… He invited me over to his house; he can’t be mad… But then why in the WORLD would he avoid me? Stupid nerd._

_Maybe he just wanted some PEACE and QUIET, because his friend wouldn’t stop TALKING!_

Takumi almost choked. _She’s here. Abort. Abort. System overload. I repeat, SHE IS HERE. ABORT-_

_I’m in the middle of a science lab, genius! Know anything about chemical compounds, buddy?_

He paused, staring at the blackboard with such intensity that the teacher was starting to worry.

_Well… yes?_

_…_

_…_

_YOU CAN HEAR ME!?_

_AHHH!!!! GET OUT OF MY HEAD, WOMAN!!!! GET OUT GET OUT GET OUT!!! WHYYYYYYYYYYYYY-_

_HELLO, EARTHLING! WHAT’S UP? I’M ELI-_

“Takumi? Are you… quite all right?”

He forces the screaming child’s voice into the back of his mind, trying to focus on the worried teacher in front of him.

“I, uh… Can I go get a drink?” He manages, and the teacher nods vigorously.

“Go ahead. If you feel sick, just visit the nurse…” She’s probably going to say more, but Takumi has already stood up, walked past the staring students, and shut the door firmly behind him.

_Sheesh. Way to handle a situation, Takumi. Everybody now thinks you are a psycho._

_I don’t!_

_…You don’t count._

_Oh._

He sighs, rubbing his temples and attempting to rid himself of a headache. This was _not_ part of the plan. Hinata never told him anything about this! He _should_ know, but then again, he never asked…

_So, stranger! Can I interest you in a conversation? Your name’s Takumi, right?_

_No. Go away. You’ve caused enough headaches to last a lifetime._

_…Geez. SO-RRY. Hmph._

_…_

_…I can’t leave. You know that, right?_

\---

Takumi flops down on his bed, completely exhausted and horribly grumpy. He’s had bad days before, but they don’t come anywhere _close_ to _this_. He sighs, letting himself sink into cushions, hoping that sleep would just come already so he wouldn’t have to _think_ anymore.

_And then, the big, bad wolf roared SO loudly the ground shook and the leaves fell off the trees, but the house stayed put!_

…Or not.

He groans and buries his head into the pillows, which helps nothing, but at least they’re soft.

_Oh, sorry! I was just reading to my stuffed animals! Do you want to listen?_

No. No no no. He wants nothing more to do with this girl. How exactly are they “soulmates”? He must’ve gotten unlucky somehow, like a freak of nature or twist of fate-

_…Hey, Takumi?_

-and now he’s stuck with someone who’s not actually his soulmate, and everyone will tease him-

_Um, well, listen… You may not like me right now… but uh, yeah…_

-or maybe they’ll have to get _married_ -

_…Maybe we can be friends… Or something?_

-not likely.

_I’m sorry, umm... I’ve been told I’m super annoying and stuff. Like… my brother always tells me I’m a brat. I guess you think so too._

-well, he wouldn’t go _that_ far…

_Honestly, I just get in the way._

…She sounds so pathetic, so sad, and he can’t help but relate. He’s the “difficult” one. The one that “doesn’t follow rules”. Not like perfect righteous Ryoma. Not like sports star Hinoka. Not like shy quiet Sakura.

He’s a deadweight. Useless.

_Hey, I think you’re pretty cool! Don’t put yourself down, buddy!_

…Coming from the girl who just called herself annoying.

_W-well, you’re smart! You did all those math problems like they were nothing! And, um… you have a nice voice… It’s sorta smooth and strong._

He… what? _What_? He’s never heard _that_ one before… He supposes her voice is alright- _there_ , he admitted it-she’s got a cute voice, all things considered, and her laugh is to _die_ for-

  _Aww, thanks! You’re pretty nice under all of the grouchiness!_

Whoops. There goes all his secrets. He can already feel himself blushing and vainly tries to stop it.

She laughs and his heart does a strange flip-flop in his chest. That’s not good… right?

_Goodnight, Takumi! We can talk tomorrow, right?_

_…Yeah. Goodnight. Elise. I guess._

_Cool! Catch ya later!_

_…Cool._


End file.
